Fall of Cairo

The Fall of Cairo (late June 1798) was a battle of the French Revolutionary Wars that occurred when the 927-strong French army of Napoleon Bonaparte stormed the Mameluke power base and Egyptian capital of Cairo, reducing the Mameluke armies to being nuissances. The French army succeeded in repelling the attacks of the inexperienced Cairene militiamen, and the French were able to conquer the city after crushing the weak defending army of Murad Bey. The victory brought much prestige to the French First Republic, as it was now in control of al-Azhar University and one of the world's most beautiful cities.